Cooking Dried Beans

[Beebs]

I had creepy crawlies infest a jar of adzuki beans.  Don't know if they were weevils.

 

A few weeks ago I threw out a bin of cornmeal, semolina and probably a bag of beans that was infested with moths.  But I think it came from the semolina.  I didn't try to save the beans, but then again they were regular non-fancy beans and I was so grossed out I just tossed everything.  This was a week after I tossed out a bunch of boxes of nice pasta infested with grubs and beetles that were in a completely separate cupboard.

 

You are in good company, my friend.

 

Anyway, I froze a couple bags of cooked, non-buggy beans (great northern), and am planning to have some for dinner tonight.  I'm a bean newbie (didn't grow up eating beans), and I'd like to try fast baked beans with pre-cooked beans. What's a good recipe?  I will probably end up tossing ketchup, molasses, etc., bake it, and see what comes out the other end.

[andiesenji]

Looking at the title and the avatar photo at the top of this page reminds me of how much I miss Fifi.  Especially at this time of the year and I recall her mentioning that after making a batch of burnt sugar candy, she scraped the pan after it had cooled and made a "meal" from the remains, unable to shove the pot into hot water and wash away all the good leavings.

 

I have never had a problem with weevils or similar bugs in beans but the incidence of creepy crawlies in the desert is not as pronounced as in areas with more ambient humidity.

I have had one incidence of opening a bag of "heirloom" beans that came in a 10-pound burlap bag and having a horned lizard fall out.  The poor thing seemed as startled as I was and I wondered what he had been living on - (bugs???).  Anyway, I caught him before the basenjis could and put him or her out in the yard and apparently it found a mate of some kind because for a number of years afterward I would see these little tan guys with the little horns on their faces, quite different from the native stock.

 

After freezing, I think it would be wise to put the beans in a wire colander and dry them well - I would use my dehydrator with the temp on low but a fan would do as well. 

Growing up on a farm where a lot of beans were grown, the beans were harvested by pulling or cutting the vines after the pods looked and felt dry and brittle, the mass was spread on the floor of the hay barn and allowed to dry some more out of the weather (it rained a fair amount in the early fall in western Kentucky) until they were considered "throughly dry" according to the man who was in charge.  They were "winnowed" in a machine that beat the hell out of the vines and pods and the dry beans and a lot of chaff fell into a long wire "box" which was also shaken and which conducted the beans down the length of it till they were funnelled into burlap bags - mostly 50 pounds - the bags sat on a scale.  Beans stored in this fashion, in a bag with air circulation, could be stored for many months.  The bags were stacked on slatted platforms and shifted every month or so, putting the top ones on the bottom and so on. 

 

I don't like to keep beans in plastic bags.  If they arrive in plastic bags I transfer them to glass jars or metal canisters (not aluminum, some beans can cause aluminum to corrode).  The hard acrilic plastics are okay but I have had some issues with bean in Cambro, the translucent flexible containers, which I love for most things but have had a couple of batches become mildewed or funky. 

 

I continue to use my electric pressure cooker for most bean dishes (not lentils, they cook rapidly) and have done a squash and beans "stew" using half of a kabocha squash I split with my neighbor, and "flavored" with some homemade sausage made from some chunks of pork "por carnitas" that I bought at the Mexican supermarket. 

I didn't follow a recipe so can't record that, but it turned out nicely, warm and satisfying for these chilly days.

Edited November 10, 2015 by andiesenji (log)

[cyalexa]

  I'm a bean newbie (didn't grow up eating beans), and I'd like to try fast baked beans with pre-cooked beans. What's a good recipe?  I will probably end up tossing ketchup, molasses, etc., bake it, and see what comes out the other end.

I just posted my recipe for baked beans in RecipeGullet. It may not be what you are looking for as I'm not sure what you mean by fast baked. 

 

https://forums.egullet.org/topic/152268-oklahoma-baked-beans/

[Beebs]

Thanks, Cyalexa - that looks tasty, I'll give it a go next time. By "fast", I mean that it can be baked in an hour or less (as opposed to the 4 hours or so some baked bean recipes call for). Anyway, I ended up mixing up ketchup, molasses and a few other ingredients, baked it for about 40 mins at 375F. Turned out pretty well. Leftovers for breakfast.

[SLB]

Thanks, y'all.  

 

Beebs, I do my baked beans in the oven all night at 180 degreesF.  Your seasoning mixture sounds wonderful;  that said, in my home there will always be a fattyporky service meat involved.  

 

There is a Jamaican style recipe from Craig Claiborne years back that involves adding rum along with brown sugar for the sweetness component.  I recommend it.  

Edited November 11, 2015 by SLB (log)

[kayb]

I love beans. I keep several different varieties on hand, but I always tend to find myself going back to my standards of red beans, navy beans, Great Northern beans, black beans and chickpeas. I use a fair amount of lentils, as well. 

 

My favorite baked beans recipe starts with soaked navy beans, in a sauce of ketchup, mustard, sorghum molasses, assorted spices, and worcestershire sauce. With, of course, salt pork, or, in a pinch, cut up very fatty bacon. I make a very non-regulation red beans and rice with a tomato base, andouille sausage, chicken and ham. Black beans get cooked with garlic, pepper and bay leaves. Chickpeas fan out in a variety of seasonings and sauces. I do a lentil soup with Spanish chorizo that's pretty marvelous. And it's really difficult to beat a good ol' bowl of white or pinto beans with hamhock and fresh, hot, buttered cornbread.

 

I bought some mung beans on a whim, and am trying to figure out how to use them.

[patrickamory]

I've mentioned it here more than once, but this recipe from janeer on her blog makes the best baked beans I've ever had in my life, bar none:

 

http://littlecomptonmornings.blogspot.com/2008/03/butterscotch-beans-saturday-night.html

[patrickamory]

Btw that's a two day prep... and make your own salt pork - it's key. This dry method works really well:

 

http://www.aliyaleekong.com/blog/salt-pork

 

So add another week to your prep if you don't have any.

[SLB]

Oh, man, does that look good.

[Beebs]

Not exactly a bean, but after making hummus from dried chickpeas, I am never (except in a pinch!) using canned chickpeas again. What a difference!

[scubadoo97]

Not exactly a bean, but after making hummus from dried chickpeas, I am never (except in a pinch!) using canned chickpeas again. What a difference!

agreed. Canned in a pinch but dried is much better

[SLB]

I usually use dried, but I had never had the RG garbanzos before; it's possible I'd never had recently-picked garbanzos before too, I guess.  They really did have more taste.  I have not experienced this with every single RG bean that has a commercially-grown counterpart, but the garbanzos were stunners.  

[blue_dolphin]

I've mentioned it here more than once, but this recipe from janeer on her blog makes the best baked beans I've ever had in my life, bar none:

 

http://littlecomptonmornings.blogspot.com/2008/03/butterscotch-beans-saturday-night.html

 

That sounds really good.  I placed an order for RG beans yesterday and included a lb of Yellow Eyes to try this out.  I'm a little skeered about the idea of making my own salt pork (recovering vegetarian who has no idea where to even buy a pork belly  ) but I'll give that part some thought as well.  Thanks for the link there, too.

[scubadoo97]

Last I used RG yellow eyes I used them in a beef stew dish for a super bowl meal. They were the winners

[TdeV]

I realize this is an old thread, but I'm curious about dried beans and the Instant Pot (of which I'm a new owner). I'm now a member of @rancho_gordo's Bean Club and have quite a few to choose from.

 

Many world-wide recipes have directions suggesting that what makes a bean dish evocative is the long slow cooking time of the beans in the sauce.

 

Can the beans be pressure cooked a day or two before? Do they get any seasoning when they are cooked?

 

Does the sauce get cooked on the day of the feast or earlier?

 

How much time and at what temperature should the beans and (finished?) sauce be "cooked" together?

[Shelby]

25 minutes ago, TdeV said:

I realize this is an old thread, but I'm curious about dried beans and the Instant Pot (of which I'm a new owner). I'm now a member of @rancho_gordo's Bean Club and have quite a few to choose from.

 

Many world-wide recipes have directions suggesting that what makes a bean dish evocative is the long slow cooking time of the beans in the sauce.

 

Can the beans be pressure cooked a day or two before? Do they get any seasoning when they are cooked?

 

Does the sauce get cooked on the day of the feast or earlier?

 

How much time and at what temperature should the beans and (finished?) sauce be "cooked" together?

I LOVE the bean club!  There is a thread around here somewhere where we used to discuss each shipment, but it kind of died out.  I need to be better about posting on it.

 

When you say sauce, you're talking broth etc. right?  I do a lot of what I call "Mexican Beans"---usually a black bean or a pinto type bean in some broth--whatever I have on hand, chicken or beef.  If I don't have any broth I throw in a couple bullion cubes.  Spices are garlic, a bay leaf or two, cumin, salt and pepper.  If I've planned ahead, I soak the beans, but more often than not, I haven't planned ahead.  If the beans are a bigger type bean, they take longer (for me anyway).  On average I start with an hour in the IP and do natural release.  If they still aren't done to my liking, usually about 30 more minutes does it.  For sure the seasoning soaks in to the beans.  I see no reason why one couldn't make the beans a day or two before.  

[TdeV]

Thanks for replying @Shelby. So far I've made a few bean soups and am trying to find recipes with less liquid.

 

Yesterday I received an invitation to cook Christmas dinner. 🤣 I'm defrosting 72 hour sous vide beef shank (4.5 lbs originally). On hand are RG Yellow Indian Woman or Cranberry beans which I could pressure cook today, in case I have trouble figuring out how much to cook them. The sauce (thick) I was figuring to make tomorrow. Maybe wine, maybe tomatoes, maybe something else . . .

 

I'm trying to understand how much cooking the beans in the sauce contributes to the dish. Before IP, my goto method for beans was to rapidly bring to boil, then 2 minutes boil, then put on a saucepan lid and leave the beans alone for 1 hour. Some beans would be almost done in that time, but I recall tomato chile taking much longer. I guess I do understand that for people who use canned beans, those beans have been cooked before any spice has been added.

 

Do you continue to cook the bean mixture after the pressure has been released from the IP? What setting and temp?

 

[lemniscate]

I am just now trying my first go at beans in the IP.  I've got 1 lb of dried Great Northern and ham broth and pork broth going.   I put some bay, fennel seeds, smoked paprika, and a touch of other spices, onions and garlic added.  Fingers crossed.

[kayb]

I typically pressure cook my dry beans, if not presoaked, for an hour with sauteed onion, garlic and a bay leaf. I don't salt until after that. If I'm going to do a tomato-ey sauce, I do that after the beans are cooked; I can then either transfer them to a baking dish or leave them in the pot and switch over to slow cook.

[TdeV]

Thanks, @kayb, slow cook low or high?

[robirdstx]

I recently used this recipe, Instant Pot Red Beans and Rice and was very happy with the way the beans turned out.

 

 

[Shelby]

4 hours ago, TdeV said:

Thanks for replying @Shelby. So far I've made a few bean soups and am trying to find recipes with less liquid.

 

Yesterday I received an invitation to cook Christmas dinner. 🤣 I'm defrosting 72 hour sous vide beef shank (4.5 lbs originally). On hand are RG Yellow Indian Woman or Cranberry beans which I could pressure cook today, in case I have trouble figuring out how much to cook them. The sauce (thick) I was figuring to make tomorrow. Maybe wine, maybe tomatoes, maybe something else . . .

 

I'm trying to understand how much cooking the beans in the sauce contributes to the dish. Before IP, my goto method for beans was to rapidly bring to boil, then 2 minutes boil, then put on a saucepan lid and leave the beans alone for 1 hour. Some beans would be almost done in that time, but I recall tomato chile taking much longer. I guess I do understand that for people who use canned beans, those beans have been cooked before any spice has been added.

 

Do you continue to cook the bean mixture after the pressure has been released from the IP? What setting and temp?

 

Oh you brave person!  That's not much notice for Christmas dinner 😳.

 

I usually keep it on the warm setting.  

 

I'm not @kayb but my IP's run hot.  I definitely do any slow cooking on the low setting and make sure to check it.

[lindag]

10 minutes ago, Shelby said:

Oh you brave person!  That's not much notice for Christmas dinner 😳.

 

I usually keep it on the warm setting.  

 

I'm not @kayb but my IP's run hot.  I definitely do any slow cooking on the low setting and make sure to check it.

Contrarily, my iPod (6 qt. model) is cooler than my other slow cookers, I use high setting.

[kayb]

4 hours ago, TdeV said:

Thanks, @kayb, slow cook low or high?

I use low.

[weinoo]

I've found that some of the RG beans are so "fresh" that they're pretty much done in about 20 minutes in the IP.

 

Couple of other things I've sorta learned.

 

Pre-soaking just gives a better end product, in my opinion. Soaked in brine, a la an old CI method. Beans cook more evenly, and of course, faster than beans which haven't been soaked.. And if I haven't started soaking the night before, I'll just use the hottest tap water and give the beans an hour or two before cooking.

 

Now, and I know this is heresy...I find the finished product to be so much better when cooked on the stovetop, with onion, carrot, celery, garlic, bouquet garni, s & p. So if there's no rush to get the beans done (and here there usually isn't), that's how I do them.

 

This is all just personal preference.

 

Oh, and I cooked some of RG's Royal Corona beans this week.  They're huge.  And let's just say they, ummmmm, are interesting digestively.